The precise part of the human brain that controls people’s sense of direction has been identified by leading scientists in a groundbreaking piece of research.

Those who have more robust nerve signals in what the scientists
describe as the brain's “internal compass” are generally more
accomplished navigators, the study suggests.

The report, published in prestigious science journal Current
Biology, indicates people tend to get lost when their internal
navigational compass cannot maintain pace with these nerve
signals.

While scientists have long held the view that such nerve signals
exist in the human brain, the theory was based on mere
speculation until now.

University College London (UCL) researchers who conducted the
study hope the discovery will help shed light on the relationship
between Alzheimer’s and a deteriorating sense of direction.

Scientists requested 16 volunteers take the time to mentally log
a straightforward virtual courtyard. They were then asked to
navigate around the space, relying on memory alone, while their
brain patterns were scanned using a high-tech MRI machine.

The scans identified the relevant part of the brain responsible
for such navigation, showing nerve cell activity in the region
each time the participants attempted to virtually make their way
around the digital courtyard.

The researchers concluded that the stronger the signal in that
part of the brain – known as the entorhinal region – the better
the volunteers were at navigating around the courtyard by memory.

Dr. John Isaac of independent scientific research charity the
Wellcome Trust said the research adds to our understanding of
diseases such as dementia.

“Why some people are better navigators than others is
intrinsically interesting, but [the research] also helps us
explain the processes that go wrong in degenerative diseases such
as dementia – leaving people feeling lost and confused,” he
told the BBC.